VZCZCXRO0327
PP RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRB #0005/01 0041658
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 041658Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1017
INFO RUCNMGH/MAGHREB COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBP/AMEMBASSY BAMAKO PRIORITY 0136
RUEHRY/AMEMBASSY CONAKRY PRIORITY 0015
RUEHNK/AMEMBASSY NOUAKCHOTT PRIORITY 3857
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI PRIORITY 0456
RUEHCL/AMCONSUL CASABLANCA PRIORITY 0034
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE PRIORITY

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 RABAT 000005 

SIPDIS 
NOFORN 

STATE FOR S/CT, PM, AF/W AND NEA/MAG 

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/04/2030 
TAGS: MARR PTER MOPS PREL SNAR GV MO
SUBJECT: GEN. WARD SIGNS CISMOA; DISCUSSES AQIM, ACSA, 
GUINEA, NARCOTICS AND FUTURE COOPERATION 

REF: STATE 130969 (NOTAL) 

RABAT 00000005 001.2 OF 003 


¶1. (S) Summary: General Ward of Africa Command visited 
Rabat on December 30 to sign the Communications 
Interoperability and Security Memorandum of Agreement 
(CISMOA) and continued military cooperation. During meetings 
with Inspector General Bennani and other Moroccan general 
officers, General Ward and the Ambassador requested 
overflight clearance for the P-3 (Reftel); asked for an 
assessment of the threat posed by AQIM; urged Morocco to keep 
Guinean junta leader Dadis Camara in Morocco a long time; and 
said he looked forward to returning to sign the ACSA. 
General Bennani and his senior staff reacted positively to 
the overflight request and said they would examine it in more 
detail. They thought Guinean Defense Minister Konate was 
weak, and, unlike other senior Moroccan officials, they 
downplayed the importance of narcotics transiting Morocco. 
End Summary. 

¶2. (C/NF) Commander, U.S. Africa Command, General William E. 
Ward visited Rabat on December 30, 2009 to meet with 
Inspector General of the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces (CHOD) 
General de Corps d,Armee Abdelaziz Bennani for the purpose 
of signing the Communications Interoperability and Security 
Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA) between the U.S. and 
Moroccan militaries. Accompanied by Africa Command Foreign 
Policy Advisor Dr. Raymond Brown, General Ward and his party 
met with the Ambassador and other members of the country 
team. General Ward reinforced the strong relationship 
between the U.S. and Moroccan militaries and predicted the 
agreement would lead to continued and expanded cooperation 
between the two nations in the future. 

--------------------------------------------- --- 
Communications Interoperability and Security MOA 
--------------------------------------------- --- 

¶3. (SBU) General Ward expressed satisfaction with his visit 
to Morocco, following recent visits to Algeria, Libya and 
Mali and serving to show equality in dealing with the 
militaries of a region that does not tend toward regional 
cooperation. He further expressed admiration and 
satisfaction with the mission,s work supporting U.S. Africa 
Command,s goals and objectives, particularly in the areas of 
security cooperation, international development and economic 
stimulation. He again explained the purpose of his command 
as orchestrating security activity on the continent in 
support of national policy and objectives, and declared his 
support for all other agencies, work in Africa. 

¶4. (C/NF) At the signing ceremony, General Bennani warmly 
welcomed General Ward,s visit both professionally and 
personally, expressing his esteem for the vision and progress 
with U.S. Africa Command. He emphasized that King Mohammed 
VI had designated him to sign the CISMOA on behalf of 
Morocco, with the understanding that the agreement was 
integral to the full utilization of the F-16 by the Moroccan 
Royal Air Force, but also with a vision to future cooperation 
for integration of technologies and weapons systems for the 
navy and army. He further reiterated previous statements 
that the King wished the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces to be on 
par with American forces in order to permit full integration 
and interoperability should the commanders-in-chief of both 
countries decide to employ their forces in a coalition or 
combined operation. 

¶5. (C/NF) General Ward returned the warm greetings and 
stated that the agreement was both a symbol of the  relationship between the two countries and signal of their  commitment to mutual security. He affirmed that the  agreement would have broad application across the entirety of  the Moroccan military, and would open doors to future  technologies and cooperation not yet envisioned in mutually  beneficial ways to guarantee stability and peace. 

¶6. (C/NF) General Ward explained that teams would visit 
Morocco in January and February to discuss implementation of 
the CISMOA and implementation meetings would take place three 
times per year thereafter. General Ward said that he looked 
forward to returning to Morocco to sign the Acquisition and 
Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) as soon as it has received 
the necessary clearances from the Department of Defense, and 

RABAT 00000005 002.2 OF 003 

General Bennani responded that he looked forward to General 
Ward,s next visit and to his participation in the next 
signing ceremony.  
---- 
AQIM 
---- 

¶7. (S) Turning to regional issues, General Ward asked 
General Bennani how he saw the regional threat from Al 
Qu,aida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and 
narcotics traffickers. Bennani responded that narcotics were 
not making their way into Morocco. However, AQIM posed a 
serious threat to countries like Mauritania and Mali that 
could not counter the terrorists. General Bennani explained 
that he was intimately familiar with Mauritania,s geography 
and topography and that the country was not capable of 
controlling its territory. Brigadier General Abdellah 
Hamdoun, the Director of Military Intelligence, offered that 
Mali lacked the means to counter AQIM. General Ward then 
briefed General Bennani, Air Force Commander Major General 
Ahmed Boutaleb and other general officers on the U.S. plan to 
gather intelligence about AQIM in Mali and Mauritania and 
requested overflight clearance for a U.S. EP-3 aircraft. 
General Bennani responded positively, saying it was important 
to box in AQIM. General Boutaleb added that the Air Force 
and the General Staff would study the overflight request and 
respond quickly. 

------ 
Guinea 
------ 

¶8. (S) General Ward next noted that Morocco was hosting some 
important guests. General Bennani asked if he was referring 
to President Sarkozy or former President Chirac. General 
Ward replied he was referring to Guinean junta leader Dadis 
Camara and Guinean Minister of National Defense Sekouba 
Konate, asking about their conditions. Surprisingly, Bennani 
had no information about either and did not even know that 
General Konate was in Morocco )- although he had attended 
the Moroccan military academy and had strong ties to Moroccan 
leaders. General Ward strongly urged that Morocco keep Dadis 
Camara as long as possible. General Bennani noted that 
Camara was in Morocco on humanitarian terms, and responded 
only that many African leaders come to the Mohammed V 
Military Hospital in Rabat for free medical care. General 
Hamdoun suggested that Konate was weak and might not be fit 
to serve as head of state for an extended period. 

------- 
Comment 
------- 

¶9. (C) General Bennani, who can be very prickly, appeared 
upbeat throughout the ceremony and related discussions. The 
CISMOA brings a level of U.S. scrutiny and procedure to the 
control and dissemination of the cryptographic and keying 
material associated with U.S. weapons systems that can appear 
intrusive to a sovereign nation. However, the General seemed 
thoughtful as he digested the discussion of the upcoming 
implementation and programmatic activities that would take 
place in the coming months and years. He and the rest of the 
senior military leadership seemed totally uninformed about 
patients at the military hospital. Moreover, General 
Bennani,s comments about narcotics transiting Morocco were 
at odds with comments from key civilian leaders who express 
significant concern about this matter. 

¶10. (C) In sum, General Ward,s visit accomplished the 
necessary act of signing the document integral to full and 
timely implementation of the F-16 program in Morocco, and 
reinforced the already strong relationship between the U.S. 
and Moroccan militaries. The upcoming year will see a full 
slate of security cooperation activities between the two 
militaries, building to the delivery of the first F-16 in 
July 2011. End Comment. 

¶11. (U) General Ward has cleared this message. 

¶12. (U) Tripoli minimize considered. 


RABAT 00000005 003.2 OF 003 



***************************************** 
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco 
***************************************** 
KAPLAN